More Shareholders Want Knight Ridder Sale

Two more major shareholders of newspaper giant Knight Ridder want the company to be put up for sale, two days after the largest shareholder PCM said the same thing.

E&P I: Southeastern, based in Memphis, Tenn., which has 8.9% shares, said in an SEC filing, “Southeastern would like the flexibility to discuss PCM’s recommendation with management, other shareholders and any other parties Southeastern deems necessary to fulfill its fiduciary duty to its clients to help ensure that the company’s intrinsic value gets recognized.”

E&P II: Another major shareholder Harris Associates urged Knight Ridder to consider putting the company on the block. HALP believes an acquisition of the company “would result in a price to shareholders substantially above the company’s current market.

Also, in another WSJ story on the sale, some raised the possibility that someone like Yahoo or even eBay might be a good buyer, besides the usual newspaper and private equity suspects. Yahoo, which has moved increasingly into original content and would like to develop its local reach. Meanwhile, Googlehas expressed interest in entering the classified-ad market, where newspapers have deep relationships and continue to play a dominant role.

Related:

Knight Ridder’s Largest Shareholder Wants A Company Sale

Who Would Buy Knight Ridder?

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